


The secret we share

by Maybeitsspidey



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, Just a short little drabble, Morgan didn’t happen, Pepper Potts Is a Good Bro, Peter Parker Feels, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, They loved each other but couldn’t be together, Tony Stark Feels, the only thing I know how to write
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-30
Updated: 2020-04-30
Packaged: 2021-03-01 16:47:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 786
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23920294
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maybeitsspidey/pseuds/Maybeitsspidey
Summary: Pepper and Peter talk about Tony a while after his funeral.Or, an alternate ending to  ‘One last goodbye’.
Relationships: Pepper Potts/Tony Stark (mentioned), Peter Parker/Tony Stark
Kudos: 21





	The secret we share

**Author's Note:**

> Just a short little Drabble. This was supposed to be part of ‘One last goodbye,’ but I went a different route instead.

The avengers building sits in the city, Peters favourite place to be, the place he could never go to ever again, never see on patrol without getting sad. His eyes tear up at the thought, running his hand through his hair as he tries not to cry. 

“I’m sorry I couldn’t save you, sir. You were one of the best people I knew. You deserved so much more than this. I know you probably hate me. Sometimes I do, too,” Peter sighs, hanging his head.

“He could never hate you, Peter.” A voice says, making Peter turn to stare up at Pepper Potts, frowning down at him. She’s poised and elegant, even in black leggings, a sweater, and flats, eyes rimmed red the same as the day of the funeral. She gestures to the spot next to him, and Peter moves to give her space, both of them looking out over the city.

“He never really told me to my face,” she starts, sitting next to him, “but I knew how he felt about you. It wasn’t easy for him, either.” She says, looking at him out of the corner of her eye. Peter furrows his brows, looking at her quizzatively.

“Ms. Potts, I’m not sure what you mean,” he states, leaning his head back against the building. She smiles, like she knows a secret he doesn’t, placing her hand on his forearm. 

“You know, for being geniuses, the both of you could be very blind,” she says, frowning again. “He was drunk. It was right after the blip or so, maybe 6 months after he came back from being trapped in space. The doctors gave him the okay to go back to normal activities, and he drank himself near to death that night.” 

Peter frowns, opening his mouth to say something when Pepper continues. 

“He was crying, which I had never seen him do in all my years of knowing him. It was terrifying. He kept saying he was sorry. I don’t even know if he saw me. He was looking at the picture you took with each other, the one with the certificate. He said, ‘I’m sorry, I loved him and now he’s gone,’ then just ‘I’m sorry,’ over and over again. With each word she says, Pepper gages Peter's reaction, tightening her grip on him when he looks like he’s going to start crying again. 

“He-he loved me back?” Peter whispers, blinking slowly as tears track down his cheeks. Pepper sighs, her own voice getting thick as she tries to hold herself together. 

“Even if he didn’t think he should have. He never hated you, Peter. He cared about you more than he thought he should’ve, but he didn’t hate you. He beat himself up for a long time about his feelings for you, even when we got back together. There was a hesitancy, I could feel it. I’ve never seen such a pure look of hope when he thought about getting you back, when he figured out time travel. He finally was getting what he wanted. He loved you. Probably still does.”

At Peter's argument, she holds her hand up, silencing him. 

“I know he loved me. More than I even knew was possible. But I also know that you were what he really wanted. I can’t be mad at that. He gave me some of the best years of my life. I know if the blip didn’t happen he would’ve pined after you for the rest of his. I can’t say if he would’ve ever told you how he really felt. Tony was not an easy man. He’d probably tell you he was a dirty old man, didn’t deserve you, But he loved you. Fully, unconditionally. I’m sorry that you both never got a chance to tell each other,” pepper says, Standing as she dusts her legs off. 

“Ms. Potts?” Peter's small, tired voice reaches her ears, making her look down again. 

“Thank you,” he says, smiling at her. She smiles back, nodding as she walks back into the penthouse. 

Peter collapses against the wall of the building as he stands, looking down to his phone, the lock screen the same, goofy picture Pepper talked about, the two of them smiling like idiots as they hold the certificate upside down, the memory so special it makes Peter's chest ache for a minute. He smiles, a watery grin as he looks up at the sky, to Tony.

“I’m sorry things had to end this way, sir. I hope you're happy, wherever you are. We’re all thinking of you,” he says, looking back at the building one last time as he swings towards his home, the brightly lit A fading away behind him.


End file.
